The relationship between illegal financial flows and state-level violence is present in conflicts around the world, and is especially pronounced in Afghanistan. In particular, the country’s thriving drug market based on the opium trade has proven to be a major economic factor that has been fueling the ongoing conflict. In this episode of Root of Conflict, Aishwarya Raje and Mwangi Thuita speak with Gretchen Peters, Executive Director of the Center on Illicit Networks and Transnational Organized Crime (CINTOC). Drawing on her role at CINTOC as well as her decades-long career as a writer and journalist, Gretchen talks through why the political economy of the War in Afghanistan is so poorly understood, and the connections between criminal networks, weakened institutions, and breakdown into disorder.

Root of Conflict

How Corruption Fuels Violence and Disorder

The War in Afghanistan following the US invasion in 2001 is almost two decades old. In recent years there’s been a growing appetite for a non-military resolution to the conflict. We speak with Laurel Miller — the Asia Program Director at International Crisis Group and a former state department official working on Afghanistan and Pakistan — about the ongoing negotiations between the Taliban and Afghan government in Doha and how the US’s goals in Afghanistan has evolved over the course of the war. We discuss the best case scenario for the peace talks, the implications of the 2020 US election, and whether the US has learned the right lessons about counterinsurgency, This podcast is produced in partnership with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts. For more information, please visit their website atwww.thepearsoninstitute.orgWatch Laurel Miller on the Afghanistan panel at the 2020 Pearson Global Forum: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Scz4JTGoagA&list=PLjioxPKLA82KySaS8BOADulND4ZMj4BQC&index=14&ab_channel=ThePearsonInstitute

Is there hope for the Afghan peace process?

Climate change will affect rich and poor countries — but poorer countries are predicted to pay the greatest human and economic cost. In this episode we interview Amir Jina, an Assistant Professor at University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy, researching how economic and social development is shaped by the environment. He uses economics, climate science, and remote sensing to understand the impacts of climate in both rich and poor countries.In our conversation with Prof. Jina, we discuss how shocks to the water system could impact conflict patterns — and whether it’s even possible to identify a causal relationship between conflict and climate change. We also talk about his work at the Climate Impact Lab using state of the art empirical methods to study the effects of climate change.This podcast is produced in partnership with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts. For more information, please visit their website at www.thepearsoninstitute.org . Links to articles discussed in the episode:Watch Amir Jina on a panel at the 2020 Pearson Global Forum on the theme of Climate Conflict: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QO6nAAK4rw&list=PLjioxPKLA82KySaS8BOADulND4ZMj4BQC&index=6&ab_channel=ThePearsonInstitutePodcast Production Credit: Interviewing: Aishwarya Raje and Mwangi ThuitaEditing: Aishwarya Raje and Mwangi ThuitaProduction: Aishwarya Raje and Mwangi Thuita

How Will Climate Change Impact Conflict Trends?

In this episode of Root of Conflict, Pearson Fellows Daniella Choi (MPP ‘20) and Daniel Vallejo (MPP ‘21) speak with Dr. Rebecca Wolfe and Maurice Amollo. Dr. Wolfe is a Lecturer at the Harris School of Public Policy and is an expert on political violence, conflict, and humanitarian policy, and Maurice Amollo is the Chief of Party for Mercy Corps in Nigeria. The two of them have worked together on the USAID-funded “Community Initiatives to Promote Peace”, a multifaceted program aimed to bring together pastoralists and farmers by engaging community and faith-based leaders to promote peace in Nigeria. Rebecca and Maurice discuss the roots of conflict in Nigeria, how the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a disruption in their programs, and the importance of building trust between people and institutions.This podcast is partnered with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts. For more information, please visit their website at www.thepearsoninstitute.org.Podcast credits:Daniella Choi (MPP'20) - CohostDaniel Vallejo (MPP'21) - CohostYi Ning Wong (MPP'21) - Producer/Editor

COVID-19 and Peacebuilding in Nigeria: Rebecca Wolfe and Maurice Amollo

Frances Z. Brown is a Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. She recently co-authored a report titled “Coronavirus in Conflict Zones: A Sobering Landscape”, which examines how the COVID-19 pandemic is playing out in 12 different conflict-affected states, and how efforts to contain the virus increase the likelihood of aggravating those conflicts.

COVID-19 in Conflict Afflicted States

The Citizenship Amendment Act and Article 370 was abrogated late in 2019 in the Kashmir, which further restricted autonomy in the region and increased unrest in the state. In this episode, we speak to Salwa Shameem, who is a film maker and strategy consultant, and Rohool, a local activist in Kashmir, about the conflict and its broader implications.

Autonomy and Kashmir: Salwa Shameem & Rohool

The Global Fragility Act (GFA) was passed by Congress as part of the 2020 Consolidated Appropriations Act and was signed into law on December 20, 2019. The bill represented a historic victory for the peacebuilding field, which has long advocated for the GFA as a way forward to prevent violent conflict.The Alliance for Peacebuilding, a non-partisan network of over 110 organizations working to build sustainable peace, has been at the forefront of advocating for the GFA. In this episode of Root of Conflict, we speak with Liz Hume, Vice President of Alliance for Peacebuilding. Liz is a conflict expert with over 20 years of experience in leadership positions in multilateral organizations and NGOs. Liz discusses Alliance for Peacebuilding’s role in getting the GFA passed, as well as the importance of research and advocacy in crafting policies that promote peaceful political outcomes.

Preventing Conflict in Fragile States: Liz Hume

There are currently over 70 million people displaced by war, conflict, and persecution worldwide (more than the population of Thailand). The vast majority of them are in low- and middle-income countries without adequate resources to support and resettle them. We spoke to Dr. Cindy Huang, vice president of strategic outreach at Refugees International and a visiting fellow at the Center for Global Development, about policy initiatives that can improve protection and outcomes for displaced people. We had a wide-ranging conversation about the politics of refugee resettlement, weaving together narrative and evidence for policymakers, how refugee policy can be integrated into our support for host countries’ development agendas, and “Me Too” in the development community.Interviewers: Sonnet Frisbie and Mwangi Thuita. Episode edited and mixed by Aishwarya Raje and Mwangi Thuita. Sound engineering by Yi Ning Wong.

Coping With the Global Refugee Crisis: Cindy Huang

For the last several years, police violence in America has come tothe forefront of public consciousness. It is an issue that can polarize the country but for years, there lacked a data-driven analysis of police violence on a national level, and concrete policy recommendations on the issue were hard to come by.  On this episode of Root of Conflict,Pearson Fellows Sonnet Frisbie and Mwangi Thuita speak with Sam Sinyangwe - activist, data scientist, and co-founder of Mapping Police Violence, the most comprehensive database of people killed by police.  Sam discusses the evidence-based approaches to measuring police violence in America, and the importance of conveying the data, to the public and to policymakers, in a way that can affect real policy change.

Police Violence in America

What is the role of big data in modern-day conflict? How prepared are defense leaders ininterpreting data and effectively leveraging its use on the battlefield? How has cyber warfareevolved over the past decade, and what lessons can we draw from the Russian example inCrimea?We attempt to address these questions in this episode of Root of Conflict, where Pearson FellowsSonnet Frisbie (MPP ‘21) and Haz Yano (MPP ‘20) interview Colonel (ret.) Liam Collins, theExecutive Director of the Madison Policy Forum and the Viola Foundation. COL (ret.) Collins isa retired Army Special Forces Officer who previously served as the former Director of theCombating Terrorism Center and the Modern War Institute at West Point.Drawing on his vast professional experience (to include a stint as the executive officer forGeneral (ret.) John Abizaid when he was the Senior Defense advisor to Ukraine), COL Collinsshared his thoughts on how the defense community can adapt to take advantage of themeasurement revolution, and what to make of Russia’s innovative use of cyber and hybridwarfare in Ukraine.This podcast is partnered with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of GlobalConflicts. For more information, please visit their website at www.thepearsoninstitute.org.Links to articles discussed in the episode:“The Pitfalls and Possibilities of the Measurement Revolution for National Security,” War on theRocks - https://warontherocks.com/2020/01/the-pitfalls-and-possibilities-of-the-measurement-revolution-for-national-security/“A New Eastern Front: What the US Army Must Learn from the War in Ukraine,” Associationof the US Army - https://www.ausa.org/articles/new-eastern-front-what-us-army-must-learn-war-ukraine

Future of Defense: Big Data and Cyber Warfare

Are female leaders more likely to engage in warfare than male leaders? In this episode of “Root of Conflict” we spoke with Dr. Oeindrila Dube, the Philip K. Pearson Professor of Global Conflict Studies at the Harris School of Public Policy to help answer this question. Dr. Dube recently co-authored a paper titled “Queens”, which examines Europe from 1480-1913 to see if states led by women experienced more peace than states led by men. The findings show that women leaders were more likely to participate in war than male leaders during this period, challenging many norms and perceptions of women in leadership positions. Professor Dube walks us through the empirical approaches used in this research, as well as how to interpret these findings within the broader context of the study of gender and conflict. Dr. Dube's Paper can be found at: http://odube.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Dube_Harish_Queens_Paper.pdf Podcast Production Credit: Interviewer: Aishwarya Raje. Episode edited and mixed by Mwangi Thuita.

The Wars of Queens

In this episode of Root of Conflict, we spoke with Andrew Lavali, the founding Executive Director of the Institute for Governance Reform (IGR), a research and evidence-based advocacy think tank based in Sierra Leone. In this interview, we discussed the concept of “social accountability” in a post-conflict context, as well as the IGR’s work in promoting sustainable development and strengthening political and economic governance in Sierra Leone. The full music video for “My Vote, My Life” can be found athttps://youtu.be/zzTNfE9QgwY .Podcast Production Credit: Interviewers: Aishwarya Raje and Mwangi Thuita. Episode edited and mixed by Yi Ning Wong and Mwangi Thuita.

Building Peace and Social Accountability: Lessons from Sierra Leone

In August 2016, negotiations between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) reached a historic agreement to end the civil conflict that had been fought in Colombia for over forty years. In an exclusive interview with Root of Conflict, Ambassador Sergio Jaramillo Caro, former High Commissioner for Peace in Colombia and lead negotiator of the talks between the Colombian government and FARC, discusses the lead-up to the negotiations and what has transpired in regards to the agreement since 2016. Additionally, Pearson Fellows Camila Perez (MPP '21) and Daniel Vallejo (MPP '21) share their personal experiences of how the peace process has changed the culture and atmosphere in their native Colombia. Podcast Production CreditInterviewers: Manuel Bustamante and Marina Milaszewska. Episode edited and mixed by Yi Ning Wong, production assistance from Aishwarya Raje and Mwangi Thuita. Special thanks to Camila Perez and Daniel Vallejo for sharing their stories.

Perspectives on the Colombian Peace Process

Professor James Robinson (Pearson Institute director and co-author with Daron Acemoglu of the bestselling book Why Nations Fail) sat down with Root of Conflict to discuss his new book "The Narrow Corridor: States, Societies and the Fate of Liberty." In his new book, he and his co-author explore how an incessant struggle between the state and society allows countries to enter a narrow corridor between despotism and lawlessness and to develop liberty and inclusive institutions. In a wide-ranging conversation, Robinson applied the theory of his new book to peace in Colombia, U.S. history, China’s use of technology to oppress citizens, and populist movements in Europe. Podcast Production Credit: Interviewers: Manuel Bustamante and Sonnet Frisbie. Episode edited and mixed by Yi Ning Wong.Production assistance from Haz Yano and David Raban.

Finding the Narrow Corridor

Why are some places affected by violence and disorder while others enjoy peace and stability? From the University of Chicago Public Policy Podcasts, “Root of Conflict” analyzes violent conflict around the world, and the people, societies, and policy issues it affects. We meet with leading experts to discuss what can be done to create more peaceful societies.This series is produced in partnership with the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts, Harris School of Public Policy.

hubhopper

Root of Conflict

hubhopper